ASUS VG289Q Review: Budget 4K IPS FreeSync Gaming Monitor

The ASUS VG289Q was one of the first 4K IPS monitors to be available as a 28″ variant, with most alternatives with similar specifications being 27″.

In short, it offers excellent picture quality, smooth performance and plenty of useful features for a very appealing price as far as 4K 60Hz IPS displays go.

Image Quality

The ASUS TUF-series monitor is based on a 28″ AAS (IPS) panel by Innolux with 178° wide viewing angles, a 1,000:1 static contrast ratio, a 350-nit peak brightness and a wide 90% DCI-P3 color gamut with dithered 10-bit depth support.

4K UHD resolution results in a rich pixel density of 157.35 PPI (pixels per inch) on the 28″ screen of the VG289Q.

In comparison, the more popular 27″ 4K models have a pixel density of 163.18 PPI.

This difference isn’t really noticeable as you get plenty of screen space and vivid details with this 28″ 4K monitor, and you will need to use scaling to make small text readable.

Keep in mind that for PC gaming, 4K UHD is very demanding, so unless you have a high-end GPU, we recommend going with a more economical 1440p monitor with a higher refresh rate.

Even if you have a powerful graphics card, you should consider acquiring a higher refresh rate display for games as it makes for a lot more enjoyable gaming experience.

For console gaming, watching movies, work and everything else, 4K makes a lot more sense.

The ASUS VG289Q supports HDR (High Dynamic Range), but it doesn’t even carry VESA’s entry-level DisplayHDR 400 certification. In truth, this certification is meaningless anyway.

For instance, the LG 27UL650 monitor has the DisplayHDR 400 badge because it has a peak brightness of 400-nits, whereas the VG289Q has a maximum luminance of 350-nits.

However, LG’s monitor covers only the standard sRGB color space, whereas ASUS’s model has a wider color gamut.

Furthermore, Innolux’s IPS panel has a generally higher static contrast ratio of a bit over 1,000:1 (varies across different units of the monitor), whereas the contrast ratio on LG’s IPS panel varies between 700:1 to 1,000:1 maximum.

As a result, the ASUS VG289Q has more vibrant colors as well as slightly deeper blacks and brighter whites in comparison to LG’s UL600, UL650 and UL850 monitors – even though it has no DisplayHDR certification. This also applies to LG’s UK and UN series.

And the 50-nit peak brightness difference is not noticeable.

For a noteworthy HDR viewing experience, a display needs a much higher brightness and contrast ratio with local dimming, but these monitors are also much more expensive.

With the ASUS VG289Q, you just get a glimpse of what HDR can do. Some HDR content will look a bit better, and some will not. Usually, console games benefit more from this type of HDR support than PC content.

SDR content, on the other hand, will look great! High pixel density ensures vivid and crisp details, while the colors are accurate, consistent and vibrant.

Due to the monitor’s wide color gamut, colors will be more saturated and lifelike. Still, you can use the provided sRGB emulation mode in case you want to restrict the color reproduction to ~100% sRGB for more accurate output. Just how accurate this mode will be, however, depends on the factory calibration of the individual unit.

Performance

Moving on, the ASUS VG289Q 4K monitor supports AMD FreeSync with a 40-60Hz variable refresh rate (VRR) range over both HDMI and DisplayPort.

FreeSync works without issues with compatible GeForce cards even though it’s not officially certified by NVIDIA.

Due to the narrow VRR range, once your FPS (Frames Per Second) dips below 40FPS, FreeSync will stop working until your frame rate is back within the range since the monitor doesn’t support LFC (Low Framerate Compensation).

The ASUS VG289Q input lag amounts to ~9ms, which makes for imperceptible delay at 60Hz.

Next, the response time speed is 5ms GtG, and there’s no prominent ghosting or motion blur in fast-paced video games. You can use the TraceFree feature in the OSD (On-Screen Display) menu to tweak the response time overdrive.

There are six levels of overdrive, from 0 to 100 (increments of 20). For most content, setting this feature to 40 or 60 will work best as it eliminates most ghosting without adding any overshot or inverse ghosting.

Further, the ASUS VG289Q monitor uses a flicker-free backlight, which prevents headaches after prolonged use of the display, and it has a low blue light filter with four different intensity levels for a comfortable viewing experience at night.

Features

You will find all the standard ASUS features in the OSD menu, including customizable crosshairs, a refresh rate tracker, an on-screen timer and the GameVisual pre-calibrated picture presets (sRGB, FPS, RTS/RPG, Racing, MOBA, etc.).

Other features include Shadow Boost (alters the gamma curvature for better visibility of objects in shadows) and two different HDR modes: HDR Cinema and HDR Gaming.

There are plenty of picture adjustment tools available, including saturation, sharpness, color temperature, skin tone (reddish, yellowish and natural) and standard brightness/contrast settings. There are no gamma presets, though.

ASUS also offers the VividPixel and ASCR (dynamic contrast ratio) features, which we recommend turning off for the best picture quality.

The picture quality is excellent out of the box, though you might want to decrease the brightness a bit.

However, since every unit of the monitor is at least slightly different, we recommend checking how your monitor handles the tests on this website and tinkering with the controls a bit to get the most out of your monitor.

As it’s the case with all monitors, there is some backlight bleeding and IPS glow noticeable, but nothing excessive.

Navigation through the OSD menu is quick and easy thanks to the 5-way joystick. There are three additional hotkeys for shortcuts (GamePlus, GameVisual) and the power button.

Design & Connectivity

The ASUS VG289Q features a fully ergonomic design with height adjustment up to 150mm, +/- 62° swivel, -5°/20° tilt, 90° pivot and 100x100mm VESA mount compatibility.

Connectivity options include two HDMI 2.0 ports, DisplayPort 1.2, a headphone jack and an audio line-in port for the dual 2W integrated speakers. The screen has an anti-glare matte coating which eliminates reflections.

Price & Similar Monitors

The ASUS VG289Q goes for ~$290. There’s also the ASUS VG289Q1A model with a tilt-only stand for $20 less.

Other monitors using the same panel include the Acer CBL282K and the Samsung U28R550. They offer similar image quality and performance, but different features and designs.

The MSI G281UV based on the same panel with a tilt-only stand can be found for only $200. Therefore, it’s the best budget 4K 60Hz model available.

Visit our best gaming monitor buyer’s guide for more information and the best deals available.

Conclusion

While the ASUS VG289Q is a decent monitor overall, there are better models available in this price range.

Specifications

Screen Size	28-inch
Resolution	3840×2160 (Ultra HD)
Panel Type	IPS
Aspect Ratio	16:9 (Widescreen)
Refresh Rate	60Hz
Response Time	5ms (GtG)
Adaptive Sync	FreeSync (40Hz-60Hz)
Speakers	2x2W
Ports	DisplayPort 1.2, 2x HDMI 2.0
Other Ports	Headphone Jack
Brightness	350 cd/m2
Contrast Ratio	1000:1 (static)
Colors	1.07 billion (8-bit + FRC) 90% DCI-P3
VESA	Yes (100x100mm)